1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technology for outputting audio signals.
Priority is claimed on Japanese Patent Application No. 2007-204615 filed on Aug. 6, 2007, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
2. Description of the Related Art
AV (audio/visual) devices such as AV amps and AV receivers connect various types of playback equipments and recording/playback devices such as the DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) player and CD (Compact Disc) player, and are capable of playing back or reproducing numerous media such as DVD-Video, CD, DVD-Audio, SACD (Super Audio CD), and Video-CD. With respect to such AV devices, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication No. 2002-142278 offers an equipment control method wherein functions or parameters which have been preset by the user are accessed by a single key stroke. According to this method, it is possible to store various settings in the AV device such as input switching operated by remote controller, surround mode switching, adjusted frequency properties by using a graphic equalizer, and volume adjustment of electronic volume, and it is possible to read the stored contents when a predetermined operation is conducted by pressing keys and to set the respective parameters to read contents.
In recent years, with respect to AV devices provided with surround functions by multiple channels such as 5.1 ch or 11.2 ch, devices which output individual sources in multiple zones (rooms) have been proposed. According to such devices, for example, a 9.1 ch surround can be used if a theater room alone is employed, while a 5.1 ch+2 ch+2ch configuration can be used in the case of, for example, a living room and two study rooms.
When the aforementioned AV device provided with surround functions by multiple channels is used, one may desire to output the same source in multiple zones where speakers have been installed. In such cases, with conventional devices, it is necessary to conduct selection and setting of the input source in each zone, and such work is complex.